Who Else Isn't Surprised By The Payola Story?

I know this post is a little belated, but being "in the music industry" so to speak, I felt it important to at least say my piece about this Sony Payola scandal.

First of all, I am not surprised in the least by these payoffs. Seriously, I mean, who is really listening to J-Lo and Good Charlotte anyway except for a bunch of impressionable kids who buy whatever is playing most on the radio?

What really has me wondering is why did they do it? If Sony really felt the need to pay money to make an "artist" successful, why did they even invest any money in said "artist" in the first place? Don't get me wrong, I know that this is a business, but what was the sense in signing these people and spending so much money on producing and promoting a record if they had to spend even more to get it played? There is a difference between marketing and bribery. I just can't imagine this having that great of a monetary return.

But then again, I am a music purist who naively thinks that talent should separate the successful from the mediocre and worse. It is a sad state of affairs indeed when a company won't cut its losses and actually look for real talent. Why is there this inexplicable need to reward the untalented? If anyone knows, please comment because I am too young to be jaded.